clintor3 Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Does anyone recall a north Houston men’s club in the '70s that had a statue of a giant woman oriented so that patrons entering or leaving had to walk between her legs? The tale may be apocryphal. Here's what I've been told about it: It was in the vicinity of IAH. The statue measured 50 feet or more. And it chagrined critics because of a loophole the club found to circumvent the city's building codes: being a self-supporting structure unattached to the club itself, the statue wasn't subject to the codes. The city and club were at loggerheads, so the story goes, the former stymied in finding a way to force removal, and her reign ended only when the club closed sometime later that decade.A name or even general location would be really helpful! Thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtticaFlinch Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Does anyone recall a north Houston men’s club in the '70s that had a statue of a giant woman oriented so that patrons entering or leaving had to walk between her legs? The tale may be apocryphal. Here's what I've been told about it: It was in the vicinity of IAH. The statue measured 50 feet or more. And it chagrined critics because of a loophole the club found to circumvent the city's building codes: being a self-supporting structure unattached to the club itself, the statue wasn't subject to the codes. The city and club were at loggerheads, so the story goes, the former stymied in finding a way to force removal, and her reign ended only when the club closed sometime later that decade.A name or even general location would be really helpful! Thanks!It wasn't a statue. It was a big sign. I remember seeing it all the time when I was a kid as we lived nearby. (It was around in the 80s too.) It's right off the Beltway, north side of town between 45 and 59 on the east bound side (opposite side of the Beltway to Greenspoint Mall). The sign's still there, but rather than a lady, the picture's been replaced with a big arrow or something like that. The building is a carpet store or a furniture store or something like that now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clintor3 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 Excellent info, AtticaFlinch. Thanks!So this sign with the 2-D giantess in question -- is it a standalone sign in the parking lot, like a billboard, or is it set up like I heard (i.e., so that patrons at one time could have entered/exited between legs)? I tried nosing around that part of the Beltway on Google Maps, but I couldn't find a furniture or carpet store. Do you maybe know the cross street? Is it right on the feeder? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hanuman Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 (edited) or something like that..... or something like that now....or something like that....or something like that...or...Flinch, quit thinking about the giant woman, and get it together mate! Clintor3: Message from Clintor 1, " That was NOT excellent info dude...? Edited February 12, 2010 by Hanuman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crunchtastic Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 This post has officially restored my lagging faith in the HAIF. It sums up everything I love about it here: history, buildings, intellectual curiosity, community, freaky things.If 'giant woman at 70s north Houston strip club' doesn't pique your interest, you are officially dead inside. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clintor3 Posted February 12, 2010 Author Share Posted February 12, 2010 Does Summit Flooring ring a bell, AtticaFlinch? It's on the eastbound Beltway 8 feeder just east of the Hardy Toll Road and has a big arrow-like freestanding sign at the parking lot's entrance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 I have a picture of the big gal in an old book (in storage at the moment). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 This post has officially restored my lagging faith in the HAIF. It sums up everything I love about it here: history, buildings, intellectual curiosity, community, freaky things.If 'giant woman at 70s north Houston strip club' doesn't pique your interest, you are officially dead inside.Actually, considering what I THOUGHT this thread was about, I can hardly hide my disappointment that the subject matter is merely a sign. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtticaFlinch Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 Does Summit Flooring ring a bell, AtticaFlinch? It's on the eastbound Beltway 8 feeder just east of the Hardy Toll Road and has a big arrow-like freestanding sign at the parking lot's entrance.Yep. That's it. I just looked it up on google maps street view to verify it. The sign's still there on google, though I must admit it's considerably less impressive than your friends had led you to believe. Though as a young boy, it made a hell of an impression on me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristinDaugherty Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 If 'giant woman at 70s north Houston strip club' doesn't pique your interest, you are officially dead inside.I think this will now be my new tagline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted February 13, 2010 Share Posted February 13, 2010 There was a club like you described on the feeder road of 59 just past the (northbound) Aldine Mail Route exit. I went in there in 1978 or '79 on a lark with my boss at the time, along with a couple of customers/friends from Odessa. I think I went back once, but my boss was a frequent customer there. I'm not sure, but the name of the place may have been Shady Lady, or something like that. It may have been a “strip club”, but it was definitely a club of “ill repute”. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clintor3 Posted February 17, 2010 Author Share Posted February 17, 2010 There was a club like you described on the feeder road of 59 just past the (northbound) Aldine Mail Route exit. I went in there in 1978 or '79 on a lark with my boss at the time, along with a couple of customers/friends from Odessa. I think I went back once, but my boss was a frequent customer there. I'm not sure, but the name of the place may have been Shady Lady, or something like that. It may have been a “strip club”, but it was definitely a club of “ill repute”.So it was actually a statue, not a big sign like the one AtticaFlinch recalled? That sounds like it. Do you remember anything else about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 No, it was a two-dimensional sign and not a statue, and the entry door was situated between the woman's legs. My guess is that it was about 15-20 feet tall. Shady Lady was basically a small, sleazy nudie bar that sold sex in the back room. What else do you want to know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 As I was posting the above, it came to me that I do recall seeing the sign on the North Belt knowing it was the same sign that was at Shady Lady on 59. But I can't remember if it was still a woman, or something else, like a cartoon-like character. But I did know it was the same sign. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtticaFlinch Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 As I was posting the above, it came to me that I do recall seeing the sign on the North Belt knowing it was the same sign that was at Shady Lady on 59. But I can't remember if it was still a woman, or something else, like a cartoon-like character. But I did know it was the same sign.The sign on the beltway was definitely a woman. In the early 80s my family lived in Greenridge North and we drove past it all the time. That sign used to drive my preadolescent mind crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roym Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Flinch, quit thinking about the giant woman, and get it together mate! Clintor3: Message from Clintor 1, " That was NOT excellent info dude...? Can't one of the admins just delete posts like this?! Or better yet, the entire account... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevfiv Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Please use the report button located beneath each post - it's not guaranteed that all complaints will be seen by moderators within the thread.That being written, I can urge folks to keep it on topic but that's about it. Deletion or editing is usually reserved for privacy, copyright, or other similar issues.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted February 18, 2010 Share Posted February 18, 2010 Can't one of the admins just delete posts like this?! Or better yet, the entire account... Just what was it about this thread that you found so offensive? I can't for the life of me find a single salacious or vulgar word or sentence in the entire thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roym Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Just what was it about this thread that you found so offensive? I can't for the life of me find a single salacious or vulgar word or sentence in the entire thread. What I find offensive are posts that contribute absolutely nothing to the topic, but instead, are offered merely to ridicule others. Sef: sorry, I didn't see the little "report" button that was right in front of me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtticaFlinch Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 What I find offensive are posts that contribute absolutely nothing to the topic, but instead, are offered merely to ridicule others. Sef: sorry, I didn't see the little "report" button that was right in front of me. Considering I was the object of the "ridicule", or as I actually saw it, the joke, and I didn't get offended by it, I think you'd be best served not getting your knickers in a knot. I appreciate your concern for my delicate ego, but really, I'm quite alright. People make jokes on the ol' interwebs, and not all of them start out "Knock knock" and end with "Orange you glad I didn't say banana". 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roym Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 People make jokes on the ol' interwebs, and not all of them start out "Knock knock" and end with "Orange you glad I didn't say banana". I've noticed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roym Posted February 21, 2010 Share Posted February 21, 2010 Is this the location? Perhaps the original image is still under there. Summit Flooring sign Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosmic08 Posted March 19, 2010 Share Posted March 19, 2010 As a kid, I passed this place all the time too since I grew up in the area in the 80s, but I remember it as a lit up, vegas-like sign. Am I way off ? haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Williams Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 was it east of the Hardy, or just west of it?I remeber playing at a strip club's Christmas party back in the 80's- the club was called Executive Suites. That joint was west of the Hardy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted September 27, 2013 Share Posted September 27, 2013 I have a picture of the big gal in an old book (in storage at the moment). I knew I had a picture of this! I give you....the Shady Lady!! This is a Paul Hester photograph from a book of his photos from the early 80s. Great shots of how the city looked back then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GEM Posted September 27, 2013 Share Posted September 27, 2013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronTiger Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Wow, Subdude, you did come through with your promise! Google Earth shows a house there in 1978, then a single building in 1989, then a second building behind it by 1995 (must have closed by then). The most recent section (built in front) was added between '95 and '02. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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